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[mRNA expression of basic fibroblast growth factor in the pulmonary tissues from rats repeatedly infected with
1Department of General Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical University, Wuhan 430030.
Objective:
To investigate changes in mRNA expression of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) in pulmonary tissues from rats repeatedly infected with Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP).
Methods:
Rats were infected with MP for 9 times during a period of 24 weeks by ultrasonic nebulizing inhalation to establish animal models of chronic pulmonary MP infection. In situ hybridization was performed with bFGF cDNA probe and results were quantitatively analysed to measure the changes of bFGF mRNA expression in lung tissues.
Results:
(1) MP polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests showed positive results in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) from MP infected animals (n = 4) while results were negative for BALF from the control rats (n = 4) and rats infected with MP but treated with erythromycin (n = 4). Bacterial cultures of the bronchial and the lung tissues were negative in all three groups. Observation with transmission electron microscope showed that interalveolar septa were widened with increased amount of collagen in the MP infected rats while there were no obvious abnormalities in the other two groups. (2) Positive expression of bFGF mRNA were found in alveolar walls of MP infected rats. No expression of bFGF mRNA was found in control animals. In the rats infected with MP but treated with erythromycin positive expression of bFGF mRNA was found to be scarcely distributed in alveolar walls. Quantitative analysis showed that the optical densities of bFGF mRNA expression were 41.32 +/- 10.44 in the MP infected rats (n = 4), which were significantly higher than those in the control group (0.30 +/- 0.13, n = 4, P < 0.01) and those in the MP infected and erythromycin treated rats (6.03 +/- 2.41, n = 4, P < 0.01).
Conclusions:
Repeated pulmonary infection with MP can lead to up-regulation of bFGF mRNA expression, which suggests that bFGF might play a role in the pathogenesis of pulmonary interstitial fibrosis after repeated MP infection.
Insights
Repeated Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP) lung infections increase basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) mRNA. This suggests bFGF is involved in developing pulmonary fibrosis after chronic MP infection.
Area of Science:
- Pulmonary Medicine
- Molecular Biology
- Infectious Diseases
Context:
- Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP) is a common respiratory pathogen.
- Chronic or repeated MP infections can lead to persistent lung damage.
- Basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) is implicated in tissue repair and fibrosis.
Purpose:
- To investigate the expression of bFGF mRNA in rat lung tissue following repeated MP infection.
- To determine if bFGF is upregulated in a model of chronic pulmonary MP infection.
- To explore the potential role of bFGF in MP-induced pulmonary interstitial fibrosis.
Summary:
- Rats were subjected to repeated MP infections over 24 weeks.
- In situ hybridization quantified bFGF mRNA expression in lung tissues.
- MP infection significantly increased bFGF mRNA levels in alveolar walls compared to controls and treated groups.
Impact:
- Findings indicate that repeated MP infection leads to increased bFGF mRNA expression.
- bFGF may play a significant role in the development of pulmonary interstitial fibrosis caused by chronic MP infections.
- This research provides insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying MP-associated lung pathology.